H.—ll

7

Industrial Disturbances, Ist April, 1922, to 31st March, 1930. The following information respecting the industrial disturbances that have occurred in New Zealand during the past eight years will be of interest. In the figures given disturbances are excluded where there were no disputes with the employers (such as quarrels between the workers themselves, stop-work meetings, and the like) ; in other cases a disturbance extending simultaneously over several districts respecting the same matter has been counted as one disturbance only. Some of the disturbances -consisted of refusals to work overtime without a cessation of work during ordinary hours—e.g., waterside work on Saturday afternoons and refusals of coal miners to work on certain Saturdays ; in these cases the total amount of time so lost is counted as equivalent to the number of days shown in column 3.

The above figures show that out of a total of 320 industrial disturbances 290 (90-6 per cent.) occurred amongst the three classes of workers first mentioned in the above schedule, and the remaining 30 (9-4 per cent.) took place in fourteen other industries. No disturbances occurred in the remaining sixty-one industries in which there are industrial unions of workers. The three classes of workers referred to were also responsible for 92 (90-2 per cent.) of the disturbances lasting over three days (column 3). LABOUR DISPUTES INVESTIGATION ACT, 1913. The following information shows the extent to which the workers have preferred the method provided by the above Act for t.he settlement of their disputes to the procedure to be followed if they register under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act: —

(1) " "" (2) (3) Number lasting Workers affected. ... m , ur 0 Disturbances. 1 j One Day or less. '^' lree Over Three Days, jjays. Shipping and waterside workers .. 133 64 33 36 Miners .. .. .. . . | 129 53 34 42 Freezing-workers .. .. ! 28 7 7 14 290 124 74 92 New Zealand Railway employees .. 1 .. .. 1 Flax-mill workers .. . . 2 . . . . 2 Sawmill workers .. .. 3 1 i .. 2 Plasterers .. .. .. 1 .. .. 1 Shearers (small parties) .... 7 4 2 1 Storemen ...... 5 4 1 Labourers .. .. .. 3 2 1 ! Gasworkers .. .. .. .1 1 Metal-workers' assistants .. 1 1 Stage employees . . .. 1 1 Electrical workers .. .. 1 1 Hydro-electric workers .. .. 1 .. .. 1 Tunnel workers .. . . .. 2 .. 1 j 1 Stonemasons .. .. .. 1 .. .. 1 l_ .'SO 15 5 10 Totals .. .. | 320 139 79 102

Industry affected. Particulars. Ballot of Workers, j Nature of Settlement. Shift engineers in freezing- Agreement reached without recourse to a Not required . . Agreement filed purworks, Wellington, and conference or to a Labour Disputes Com- suant to section 8 Taranaki mittee (I). Glassworkers, Auckland .. Conference called by Conciliation Com- ,, .. Ditto. missioner agreed upon minor points. Dispute then referred to a Labour Disputes Committee. Settlement resulted Tramway and omnibus em- Conference called by Conciliation Com- „ .. ,, ployees, Auckland missioner. Settlement resulted Gas Company's employees, Owing to absence of Conciliation Com- ,, Auckland missioner dispute was referred direct to a Labour Disputes Committee. Settlement resulted